Harvard education is put to good useSt. Louis rookie Fitzpatrick learned how to overcome 21-point deficit in the Ivy League

Published 6:30 am, Monday, November 28, 2005

Fitzpatrick, a seventh-round draft choice from Harvard, came off the bench in the second quarter and ignited a come-from-be- hind, 33-27 overtime victory over the Texans.

"I was thrown into a situation I didn't have time to think about," Fitzpatrick said after throwing three touchdown passes, including the game-winner in overtime, to overcome a 24-3 halftime deficit. "The biggest thing in a situation like that is to get everyone around you fired up. Once I let that first ball go, everything was fine."

Stepping in for Martin

Fitzpatrick, 22, replaced

Jamie Martin
, who left with blurred vision following a blow to the head at the end of the first quarter. Fitzpatrick was 4-of-7 for 45 yards in the second quarter.

"One of the best things about this team is the veteran leadership," Fitzpatrick said. "There aren't a lot of teams that can overcome being down by 21. The guys stepped up and got in each other's faces."

Fitzpatrick was 15-of-23 for 265 yards and three touchdowns in the second half and overtime, including a 56-yard scoring pass to receiver Kevin Curtis that won the game.

"I knew there was no way we were going to lose that game," Fitzpatrick said about getting the ball in overtime at the St. Louis 10. "In that situation, you start to get that feeling of invincibility."

The Rams trailed 27-17 with 34 seconds left. Fitzpatrick threw a 43-yard TD to Isaac Bruce, and after the Rams recovered an onside kick, Jeff Wilkins forced overtime with a 47-yard field goal with four seconds left.

Playing like a veteran

After the Rams stopped the Texans on the first series of overtime, Fitzpatrick threw a short pass to Curtis, who turned it into the a touchdown.

"He came in and acted like he'd done it before," Curtis said about Fitzpatrick. "He wasn't nervous."

Fitzpatrick recalled that in his first college start, he led the biggest comeback in Harvard's 128-year history.

In 2001, Harvard trailed Dartmouth 21-0 and won 31-21. He threw for 262 yards.

"I'm sure I'll always have some doubters, but I've always been convinced," Fitzpatrick said about being able to play in the NFL. "(Sunday) was no shock to me."

After Fitzpatrick burned the Texans' defensive backs, they offered respect.

"Hey, he's in the NFL, so he's got to be doing something right," said cornerback Dunta Robinson, one of the victims of Fitzpatrick's incredible performance. "We don't take any quarterback for granted. And we didn't take him for granted, either."